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Michelangelo String Quartet & Friends
Laeiszhalle, Kleiner Saal (Hamburg)
Michelangelo String Quartet
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Michelangelo String Quartet
Mozart, Mozart, Mozart! Pianist and passionate chamber musician Kit Armstrong has invited an illustrious group of musical friends, such as the concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic Noah Bendix-Balgley and three renowned string quartets, to take part in the Elbphilharmonie Mozart Festival. On their »Expedition Mozart« they revel in the composer’s classics, but also explore rarely performed chamber music. Kit Armstrong himself is represented with two piano concertos, one of which is chamber music through and through, while the other is a large-scale symphonic work. In the Sinfonia Concertante, Noah Bendix-Balgley and Amihai Grosz vie with one another. The composer himself would certainly have appreciated a musical evening of this kind with friends! If you still haven’t had enough of the great Viennese composer after an entire evening of him, why not stay for the late-night concert to round off the evening? You can hear »Eine kleine Nachtmusik« (what else?!), framing rare chamber music gems.
Mozart premiered his first minor-key piano concerto in Vienna on February 11, 1785. This concerto in D minor marks a departure from his usual pleasing style. Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony's scherzo reflects Stalin's terrifying image, while the Allegretto and finale assert the composer's presence through his musical initials (D-Es-C-H).
»The Chamber Orchestra of Europe is all about the music. In concert, this magical group unleashes an unbridled, emotional fervour, underpinned by profound wisdom. It is a privilege to work with this orchestra,« conductor Robin Ticciati raves about the democratically organised orchestra, with which he has been a regular guest at the Elbphilharmonie for almost ten years now. This orchestra-conductor dream team is now building on its celebrated 2019 Mozart project, and has invited Grammy Award-winning countertenor Iestyn Davies to conjure up magical moments in the Elbphilharmonie Grand Hall with arias by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and George Frideric Handel. The concert comes to an end with Mozart’s »Haffner« Symphony, whose lively finale includes melodies from the opera »Die Entführung aus dem Serail«, composed in the same year.
It is considered one of the great unfinished works in the history of music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s »Great Mass« in C minor. He probably composed it following his wedding to singer Constanze Weber; unlike with his Requiem, at least Mozart’s death did not prevent the completion of the mass. Although remaining fragmentary, this outstanding mass setting is touching to this day due to its direct expressive power. With his Le Concert des Nations established in 1989, Catalan gambist, music researcher and conductor Jordi Savall had already often been a guest in Hamburg. As an expert in early music and historical performance practice, he consistently gives the audience new listening experiences – in particular with frequently played works. Because Savall is not only interested in music from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, but he also elicits new aspects from the seemingly well-known classics. The ensemble and its conductor recently demonstrated this in 2021, for instance, with their Beethoven cycle; now, they tackle Mozart’s »Great Mass«.
Mitsuko Uchida is one of the greatest Mozart interpreters of our time. The Classical composer’s piano concertos form the centrepiece of her collaboration with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, with which the Japanese pianist has been closely associated as an »Artistic Partner« since 2016. In their joint programmes, two of Mozart’s 27 piano concertos each frame the work of a different composer. In the Elbphilharmonie Grand Hall, the rhythmic 18th and the colourful 21st frame Leoš Janáček’s wind sextet Mládí (»Youth«). Mozart wrote these two piano concertos in the space of just one year. In 1784/1785, the composer in his late 20s was riding a wave of success as one of Vienna’s leading pianists, offering his public ample opportunity to marvel at his skills as a virtuoso and composer. The wind sextet by Czech composer Janáček, on the other hand, can be seen as »a kind of reminiscence of youth«. It was composed in 1924 during a three-week stay in his birthplace Hukvaldy, and looks back on his »youth» on the occasion of his 70th birthday.
Mandelring Quartet
With this year’s concert in the Grand Hall of Hamburg’s Laeiszhalle, the Eppendorf Sinfonieorchester joins in slightly belatedly with the celebrations to mark Anton Bruckner’s 200th birthday. The programme features his Third Symphony in D minor under the baton of Hamburg conductor Thilo Jaques. The matinée will begin with the Piano Concerto No. 27 in B flat major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The Eppendorf Symphony Orchestra is delighted to be working with the fantastic pianist Emiliano Ramniceanu again after the great success of Edvard Grieg’s piano concerto.
At aged 15, Vadym Kholodenko first attracted attention when he decided upon the Maria Callas piano competition in Athens. By winning the gold medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in the USA, the career of the Ukrainian pianist finally gained momentum. Concerts took him throughout Europe, Asia and North America and always garnered rave reviews. As a result, Kholodenko is still one of the rather quiet stars on the scene, who instead of media noise prefers musical quality. Now, it is best to convince yourself of this at his Elbphilharmonie debut as part of »Pianomania«. Kholodenko is consequently the perfect candidate for the current theme of »Transcriptions« because he has also made several arrangements of well-known works for the piano himself. In Hamburg, however, he now presents two unfamiliar arrangements: firstly, the piano version of Mozart’s Requiem, made by the German composer and pupil of Liszt, Karl Klindworth. Then, Franz Liszt’s appropriation of Hector Berlioz’s famous »Symphonie fantastique« – a wild musical ride, which Berlioz’s vast score congenially captures using 88 keys.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
Returning to Hamburg for the again, New Jersey Sinfonietta presents four extraordinary young musicians, aged 14 to 17, who will captivate audiences with their award-winning performances. As winners of the 2024 competition, these gifted performers represent the future of classical music, combining technical mastery with artistic depth. Aligned with the New Jersey Sinfonietta’s mission to nurture young talent through exceptional performance opportunities, this concert is a unique chance to witness the next generation of classical virtuosos.
The chamber orchestra »Kammersolisten Berlin« was founded in April 2015. The members of this ensemble have known each other for many years and have performed together in a wide variety of formations around the world. Individually, each member is either an outstanding soloist, chamber musician or orchestral musician from one of Berlin’s various major orchestras (Konzerthaus Berlin, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, etc.). The friends and musicians play freely, drive each other to peak performances and thus arouse enthusiasm and emotions in the audience. The international line-up provides an unrivalled diversity of ideas, with a repertoire that includes works from the baroque, classical, romantic and modern eras.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
The chamber orchestra »Kammersolisten Berlin« was founded in April 2015. The members of this ensemble have known each other for many years and have performed together in a wide variety of formations around the world. Individually, each member is either an outstanding soloist, chamber musician or orchestral musician from one of Berlin’s various major orchestras (Konzerthaus Berlin, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, etc.). The friends and musicians play freely, drive each other to peak performances and thus arouse enthusiasm and emotions in the audience. The international line-up provides an unrivalled diversity of ideas, with a repertoire that includes works from the baroque, classical, romantic and modern eras.
Snow, rain, or sunshine? The weather is unpredictable. A shrill wind blows, as if everything wants to reshuffle for a fair start into the new.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
»Music is the universal language of mankind« – this quote from the American writer Henry Wadsworth Longfellow reflects the power and importance of music. Music connects people from different cultures and backgrounds and creates a common language. The Hamburg Chamber Orchestra’s innovative concert series »Music of the World« begins with a cycle of Mozart’s 23 piano concertos in several concerts.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
This opera is the world in a theatrical nutshell: it deals with growing older, with trials and tribulations, with intransparent decisions. One person searches for individuality, another is too lazy to do so. Others postulate that the community is the only adequate place for the individual. Power has either been legitimised by long tradition or usurped by new regimes. Values such as assimilation and loyalty are set against self-assertiveness and independence. There is loving and dreaming, cheating and trusting. Suicides are prevented, tests passed, adventures survived. Who is right? Who has been wronged? The world of the magic flute is opaque, and everyone is looking for a pathway: within it, into it or out of it. Who holds the reigns? Who can be trusted? Could it be music? Director: Jette Steckel Set Designer: Florian Lösche Costume Designer: Pauline Hüners Dramaturgy: Johannes Blum, Carl Hegemann Video: EINS[23].TV (Alexander Bunge) Lighting Design: Paulus Vogt Premiere: 23.9.2016 Please note that stroboscope effects and partly very bright lights are being used.
As Christmas approaches, the well-known ensemble Czech Chamber Philharmonia of Prague presents an out-of-the-ordinary musical event: the festive »Christmas Gala of Favourite Classics«, featuring a selection of great orchestral works by world-famous composers. The orchestra joins forces with four top Prague opera singers to put on a concert that combines radiant elegance with a reflective Yuletide mood.
Formed in 2019, after a few successful competitions, the career of this young ensemble is heading sharply upwards: »This quartet should very soon be one of the most famous quartets of present times,« it says in a review of their first album. At the Elbphilharmonie, the four musicians can prove all their qualities because their programme passes through over 200 years of music history and, consequently, calls for the greatest flexibility. In the artificial language of Esperanto, »Leonkoro« means »Lionheart«, a reference to the famous children’s book of the same name by Astrid Lindgren about two courageous brothers. Because this quartet is framed on first violin and cello by brothers Jonathan and Lukas Schwarz. Together with violinist Amelie Wallner and violist Mayu Konoe, they studied under string quartet luminaries, such as Heime Müller from the Artemis Quartet and Günter Pichler from the Alban Berg Quartett. And did so successfully: within the briefest time, they scooped up prizes at the International String Quartet Competition at London’s Wigmore Hall, at the Concours International de Quatuor in Bordeaux and the MERITO String Quartet Award. In their programme, they firstly contrast the final, very contemplative quartet by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with the youthful light-hearted early work of Paul Hindemith. Both composers were on the viola at their respective premiere – and so were still able to apply the finishing touch to their music. Mendelssohn gave the notes for his quartet to his brother, a passionate cellist, for his birthday. He was quite obviously happy about this and performed the work very successfully. To this day, the second movement, a true »song without words«, and the third movement, which evokes dancing fairies from Mendelssohn’s »A Midsummer Night’s Dream, are particularly delightful«.
A mysterious stranger who only reveals his true identity after some time. Two different personalities between whom an exciting scene unfolds: for Augustin Hadelich, Mozart’s music is stories. »He was a composer who always thought dramatically, in story arcs; he wrote operas – and much of his instrumental music is composed in precisely this kind of language.« In Hadelich’s ProArte concert, audiences can experience twice how these instrumental stories sound live – with Mozart’s Second and Fifth Violin Concertos. The orchestral part is in the hands of the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg, which has Mozart’s music written into its DNA, so to speak. Robert Schumann’s Fourth Symphony, originally conceived as a »symphonic fantasy«, also tells a story.
»Music is the universal language of mankind« – this quote from the American writer Henry Wadsworth Longfellow reflects the power and importance of music. Music connects people from different cultures and backgrounds and creates a common language. The Hamburg Chamber Orchestra’s innovative concert series »Music of the World« begins with a cycle of Mozart’s 23 piano concertos in several concerts.
Very different worlds encounter each other in this concert. What luck that the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen is just as well known for its energetic music-making as for its versatility! Together with principal conductor Paavo Järvi, the musicians dive into the humorous and high-energy music of Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and between them let violinist Akiko Suwanei shine with the unconventional and dramatic violin concerto by Antonín Dvorák. Probably no other violin concerto has a similarly rousing entry in which orchestra and solo violin immediately begin an impassioned dialogue. The rest of the work is also fascinating with a combination of innovative ideas and catchy Slavic melodies. Compared with this heated world of expression, the music of Haydn acts like a witty conversation among good friends and so forms the elegant start of an evening rich in contrast. The concert ends with the final symphony by Haydn’s friend and artistic rival Mozart. The two of them provided a life-long musical rivalry and motivated each other to top compositional performances. You can hear the results: Mozart’s »Jupiter« Symphony is just brimming with joie de vivre as a result and was even hailed as the »greatest triumph in instrumental composition« in London. What a finale!
Dance is much more than just moving to music. It is the universal language of the soul that has connected us humans since the beginning of time. Through dance, we express emotions that words alone cannot capture – joy, sadness, love, longing, freedom. Every turn, every leap and every step tells a story that comes from deep within us. This evening transports the audience into a world of musical sophistication and passionate dance. The German Chamber Orchestra Berlin and the Korean star pianist Jae-Hyuck Cho offer an unforgettable concert evening under the motto »Mozart and Dance!«.
Coincidence or fate? No other work in music history allows this question to be discussed as emotionally as Mozart’s unfinished Requiem. Mozart died at the age of just 35 while composing the requiem mass – what sounds like the stuff of a great tragedy is a reality. But despite all the legends, one thing remains above all: Mozart’s music, which is probably one of the most moving settings of the liturgical requiem text. The wrath of God, human grief, fear and hope – Thomas Hengelbrock and his ensembles are exactly the right cast to bring all the emotions of the music to the stage. Hengelbrock precedes the famous dirge with the early Bach cantata »Christ lag in Todesbanden«. The composer was probably applying for his first organist’s post with this cantata and proves that he had mastered all the rules of the art. Following the old form of the choral cantata, the choir takes centre stage and sings movingly and powerfully about the resurrection of Jesus at Easter. In the version from 1724, Bach added a cornett and three trombones to the orchestra, providing even more goosebump-inducing moments. Death and resurrection – these central themes of Christianity are perfectly suited to the time around the last Sunday before Advent (Sunday in commemoration of the dead) at the end of November. On period instruments and with their characteristic tonal fusion between choir and orchestra, the Balthasar Neumann Choir and Orchestra, complemented by outstanding vocal soloists for Mozart’s Requiem, trace the spirituality of the overwhelming music.
The Klassische Philharmonie Bonn presents highlights of Viennese classical music in this concert. Joseph Haydn is regarded as one of the creators of the classical symphony, whose works were a model for generations of composers. His Symphony No. 92, composed in 1789, is a wonderful example of how Haydn was already known and appreciated throughout Europe at the time: originally a commissioned work for the Parisian concert series of the »Loge Olympique«, the symphony was given its nickname »Oxford« because it was performed in Oxford in 1791 when Haydn was awarded an honorary doctorate there.
The KlassikPhilharmonie Hamburg (previously Hamburger Mozart-Orchester) was founded in 1978 by conductor Robert Stehli. The orchestra’s repertoire ranges from the Baroque to the Modern period. In addition to concerts at the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival and the Mozartfest Würzburg as well as international tours, the KlassikPhilharmonie is a regular and welcome guest in Hamburg’s Laeiszhalle. The »Hamburg Proms« are something of an institution in Hamburg’s music scene: just like at the famous London model, the »Last Night of the Proms«, at the »Hamburg Proms« the audience breaks with strict concert traditions and shows its full enthusiasm by clapping, singing and tapping along with the music.